Physical Therapy

What is physical therapy?

Physical therapy is a natural approach to pain relief, function issues, and injury recovery. At Princeton Sports and Family Medicine, P.C., the skilled providers often use physical therapy as part of a medical care plan because it helps to relieve pain, encourages natural healing, and improves your strength and function.

What does physical therapy include?

1 on 1 time with the physical therapist. Your physical therapy plan depends on your problem, but it often includes a multimodal approach. You may have some or all of the following physical therapy treatments. 

• Soft tissue mobilization (massage techniques), including IASTM (Instrument Assisted STM, ex: Graston)
• Joint mobilization and manual stretching
• Targeted strength exercises to improve mobility, stability, and sport-specific function
• Blood Flow Restriction Training
• Modalities including heat, ice, Electrical Stimulation, and Therapeutic Ultrasound
• Home Exercise Program

Another important component of your recovery can be osteopathic manipulation, also called manual therapy, in which a highly trained physician carefully manipulates muscles, joints, and connective tissue in precise ways to ease pain, increase blood flow where needed, and enhance your range-of-motion.

Your physical therapist tailors your care. For example, if you suffer a running injury, you may need specific physical therapy geared toward running that helps you stretch, strengthen, and improve stability in the muscles you use while running. 

Is physical therapy right for me?

Physical therapy is an excellent tool for recovery in many situations, including:

• Sports injury recovery
• Post-surgery, such as hip replacement recovery
• Chronic pain
• Chronic mobility issues
• Chronic stiffness

Whether you’re recovering from an injury, just had surgery, or have physical restrictions because of a degenerative condition, physical therapy can help you rebuild your strength and mobility while creating a strong muscle support system within your body. 

The Princeton Sports and Family Medicine, P.C. team performs tests like functional movement screening and gait analysis to examine your movement in slow motion. This helps them find mechanical deficits and unhealthy movement patterns that they can target for correction during your physical therapy program. 

How long will my physical therapy program take?

The Princeton Sports and Family Medicine, P.C. team and your physical therapist work together to find the optimal approach and plan duration. Usually, you’ll start out with appointments at least one session a week, possibly up to daily sessions based on your needs. 

Part of your physical therapy happens in your own home. Your physical therapist gives you prescribed exercises that you should do every day as directed to help you build strength and improve function even faster. 

Your physical therapy sessions may go from a few weeks to several months, according to your progress and personal needs. 

Call Princeton Sports and Family Medicine, P.C., or click on the online appointment tool to learn more about physical therapy.